


Spitfire: a murder mystery.

by orphan_account



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: F/F, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:28:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24370582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Can Ri Cousland solve a mysterious murder spree before time runs out for her to stop Loghain and the man who murdered her family from tearing her nation apart?
Relationships: Leliana/Warden (Dragon Age)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	1. Dreams and Nightmares

_Bryce Cousland was a pious man, loving father and dutiful husband so why the Maker chose to test his patience by sending so many suitors to attempt to court his daughter he could only guess._

_Of course he always knew it would only ever be an attempt, his wife once asked as they waited down the hall from their mess hall which their daughter took one such suitor to for privacy, “What do you think her reason will be this time?”_

_Before he could respond the dining hall’s doors swung open and the nobleman came out clutching his wrist which was swollen.  
“What do you feed that girl?! I can’t believe she did that to me!” Given his pomp and outfit Bryce could surmise what occurred._

_“Did you accept her challenge boy?” His wife gripped his hand tightly, silently pleading that he only keeps his voice stern and doesn’t..react sternly to this man. The family hound now curiously stuck it’s head out from the nearby pantry._

_“Yes however-”_

_“Then you accept the consequences. Leave before her hound eats you.” Bryce grinned as the loyal pup barked down the hallway and made the color drain from this nobleman’s face._

_\--  
They found their daughter attacking a wall with a sword, cursing under her breath._

_Bryce was old but managed to hear a few “Tosser, expect me to bow….expect me to cook...what do I look like….”_

_He regarded her a moment, his spitfire of a daughter and startled her with a boisterous “A beautiful battlemaiden who could only be satisfied with a suitor of a more...fairer nature I suppose?”_

_His daughter turned and smiled bashfully “You knew..?”_

_He stepped closer and cupped his daughter's cheek, her skin had a farmers tan from the ridiculous amount of time she spent exploring and her red hair was a frizzy mess._

_“I always knew and never ever cared...you are my spitfire, my champion of a daughter-” ___

__“Ri...it’s time to wake up.” She was being gently shaken by her bedmate, Leliana was radiant as ever in the early morning light and she couldn’t help but smile at her._ _

__“Morning dove, was I dreaming again?”_ _

__Leliana, her hands busy with untangling her hair with an expensive Orlesian brush nodded._ _

__“Yes...It looked like a happy one...you were smiling.”_ _

__Ri looked down at her hands, the burn marks from the pantry door which Howe’s men had lit a blaze still present...a reminder she had lost her father…her family._ _

__“Just a wish for something that never occurred. I’ll be fine Dove.”_ _

__Though she thought to herself...Howe’s head on a pike would help more than anything else._ _

__“He’d be proud you know, what you’ve done, the compassion you’ve shown.” The bard spoke softly as she moved to embrace her, newly brushed long red hair gently swaying to intermingle with Ri’s own._ _

__“Thank you dove, you’re a rather sparkling treasure you know that?”_ _

__The bard blushed and the two kissed, the sun peeking through the tent flaps and the sound of Alistair and Morrigan arguing about breakfast outside._ _

__\---------------_ _

__After Ri had corralled the two arguing party mates, Leliana joined the three of them on a trip to Denerim._ _

__The streets and buildings were as hodge-podge as ever which pulled nostalgically at Ri’s heart, she had a task though and the family heirloom plate she wore was heavy figuratively with her duty and literally with how the local had altered it._ _

__“Oof!” She had mistakenly walked into a young boy knocking him down, causing her three party members to react as they naturally would, Morrigan rolled her eyes, Alistair looked mortified for her and Leliana went about checking on the lad._ _

__Ri moved to assist her and apologize “I’m so sorry young man, are you okay?”_ _

__He couldn’t have been no more than eleven years old and spoke with a hoarse voice, his clothes tattered and his face bruised. “Didn’t mean anything miss, just trying to stay low, dangerous these days, don’t want to see anything, know anything.”_ _

__This caused her to tilt her head and ask “What do you mean?” The boy pointed in the direction of an alleyway and Ri felt...concerned. “Stay with him you three, I’m going to attempt to see what’s down there that spooked him so much.”_ _

__As she passed she let a few silver drop in the boy’s lap, smiling and winking at him. “Enjoy some hot stew with my friend Leliana okay?” Leliana nodded at her and took the boy in the direction of the tavern._ _

__\--_ _

__The alleyway stunk of burnt flesh that’s what she noticed first, it was dark even though it was day, repaired crumbling walls and windows of the nearby houses and businesses creating a sort of canopy that blotted out the sun’s reach._ _

__The second thing she noticed was the marks in the dirt though that took lighting her lantern to ascertain. Long finger marks of someone being pulled and trying their best to hang onto the earth and finding no purchase._ _

__Taking her greatsword from her back she moved slowly towards the end of the trailing marks and found a door._ _

__Blood had been used to write a symbol and she knew it had to be blood magic so she sheathed her weapon and ran back for Morrigan’s aid._ _

__\----_ _

__“It’s not meant to be used to harm anyone, I believe this technique is used to...ward off evil.”_ _

__

__Morrigan continued to examine the runes however, they twisted and turned in mysterious ways and Ri sighed._ _

__“I could try something?” Alistair asked softly, he was always shy around Ri since their talk about boundaries and misunderstood signals. She smiled at him. “Go ahead Sir templar.” Alistair groaned “Don’t call me that please, rather be called a bastard.”_ _

__“Then do something useful bastard and get on with it.” Morrigan said, smiling sweetly._ _

__Ri gave her a look and she shrugged, getting out of the way and letting the warrior near who mumbled a few prayers and touched the blood-rune seal, white magical light glew from his hand and the barrier was dispelled._ _

__Morrigan sarcastically clapped, given the roll of her eyes that accompanied the gesture._ _

__Alistair stepped back and rubbed his neck. “That should make it safe now...your move now Riannon.”_ _

__She grimaced, her full name always sounded so wrong to her but she sighed and moved to the door, unsheathing her greatsword._ _

__Slowly she gripped the handle and pushed, it was unlocked thankfully, the magic most likely being all the protection whoever or whatever was here before them thought it needed._ _

__The door creaked loudly and that’s when the first body came falling out, a withering corpse with no legs which Ri startled jumped back from._ _

__It was flanked by two other moving corpses, all three were men, with long faded grey hair and sunken faces, moaning in agony._ _

__“Makers balls!” Ri shouted and took her sword to them properly, dispatching them with decapitations._ _

__“Strong magic did this but not the same from whoever sealed them in.” Morrigan said as she examined the bodies._ _

__Each wore an amulet with seven sharp points around a gold centre disc._ _

__“What are we going to do Ri?” Morrigan asked, most likely hoping she’d say it wasn’t their business._ _

__“Find who did this and kill them.” Ri said bluntly, that at least made the witch smile._ _

__Alistair chuckled anxiously behind the two women._ _


	2. Plans

Leliana was comforting the boy when they approached, the tavern was well lit and the bartender kind. Ri loved this place and grinned as the boy smiled in her direction.

“You mind answering some questions for us bud?” Ri crouched to his level next to the table he sat at with her love. 

“..sure.” He said bashfully 

Riannon recalled what Morrigan had pressed her to ask the child. “Did you see any men in weird clothing? Something foreign?” 

The sconces flickered almost as if in dread when he looked down at his hands and said “Yes..fuzzy clothes and they had big sticks.” 

Leliana mouthed “Mages?” Ri didn’t respond, instead she said “What about how they moved or acted?”

The boy gripped his sides and shook his head suddenly frightened beyond belief “No! I don’t want to talk about that.”

Leliana gently pat his back and began to hum, a soft lullaby which the boy hummed in return, later she’d tell Ri how she taught him this trick but for now the boy was calm enough to say “They moved like it...hurt. As if someone was forcing them.”

Ri nodded and thanked the boy, ruffling his hair gently before standing and heading back outside, giving Leliana a kiss on the forehead before leaving.

\--

She found Zevran doing as she had asked, examining the corpses. 

“You were right to inquire for my help my friend, these blade marks were meant to convince people they were killed by stab wounds.” The assassin pointed at the marks at the necks of the corpses, long slashes and stab wounds present. The veins however had been puffed up, maybe even stretched by Ri’s very basic medical knowledge thanks to Wynne’s mentoring.

“However?” Ri pressed, crouching to get a better look.

“Notice how the veins are? I think...they had their blood removed from their bodies, most likely before death.” Zevran then pulled out a knife and cut into one of their arms, a blue liquid seeped out and Morrigan who had been watching quietly called out “Don’t get any on you! That’s pure liquid lyrium!”

The assassin and the Warden stepped back quickly at her warning and Ri chose to regroup back at the tavern.

\---  
The boy had found his way to his family thankfully but left them with a nugget of information...that wasn’t the only door with a blood seal in Denerim.

Her companions all looked for a plan from her and she sighed, rubbing her temples “We can find the other doors with the help of the mages collective.” 

Morrgian snorted derisively at that. Ri rolled her eyes but continued “Zev, go get Wynne, they trust her and we need her expertise here anyway.”

Riannon turned to Zevran “I need you to track down a templar and...convince him to part with his notes and missives.”

The assassin did a flamboyant bow and headed out.

Ri sighed, it was going to be a long day.


	3. One step closer.

Though the mages collective was a secretive group, Ri’s constant aid to their endeavors and a few good words from Wynne convinced a representative to meet her in the backroom of Gnawed Noble Tavern.

He was a shy man with a nervous tick of itching his face, he had little stubble and barely looked fifteen.

“We don’t know of any blood mages in Denerim, if you found any evidence of such practices why not just tell a templar?”

He seemed incredibly on edge and Ri sighed “I’d rather not have all the mages in Denerim, hunted for sport.”

This caused him to chuckle and she risked a small smile, rubbing the back of his neck he says “We’ve had missives detailing a rogue templar who’s evaded our attempts to identify him, we know only two things about him, he is old and blind but wherever he goes, mages disappear and then reappear as..well you’ve seen them.”

She considered this for a moment and then punched her palm with enthusiasm “Well! I know what’s next for me then! Time to interrogate some templars.” 

The mages collective representative just looked at her like she was crazy.

\-----

“Oh no! A foul maleficar is hunting me, whatever shall I do?” Leliana loudly proclaimed, most market folk ignored her but one man clad in armor chased after her.

Her love led him into the alley and there waiting was herself, Sten and Morrigan. “Greetings ser knight-”

Morrigan cut her off “Tell us about the blind templar you puny man before I burn your tongue from your mouth!”

Everyone in the alley blinked at her and she sighed “Please…” Ri nodded with approval and said “I’d rather not beat you up so maybe just tell us about a templar who may or may not be filling mages bodies with lyrium?” 

At that the templar dropped to his knees. Clutching his sides he screamed in agony, Leliana drew her bow, Morrigan readied a spell and Sten looked for any observers. Ri tried to help him, running to his side.

He pushed her away shouting “Leave me! The mages do not know what comes, he is coming for them all, will force them to be what he sees them as! You can’t stop the Sightless one.” 

He perished then coughing up lyrium infused blood.

“The sightless one? That’s a bit...on the nose.” Leliana said softly.

“I don’t think Templars are known for their creativity..” Morrigan said dryly. 

Ri rolled her eyes at her. “We’re one step closer now though.”

To what however none of them could be sure.


	4. Break at the Pearl

Zeveran had finally returned telling a similar tale of a frightened knight who died after warning him about a “Sightless One.” 

“I also found this on a templar I questioned, it looks like the ones we found on the bodies yes?” Zev handed Ri a golden amulet, just like the others.

Nodding at her assassin friend she said “Go and do some spying, learn what you can from any chantry members or Templars about this Sightless One fellow, steal if you have to-” Zev cut her off “Where do you think that one came from my friend? I’m on it now, don't worry.” 

With that he left and Ri just felt tired in all honesty but her love came and embraced her, the two stood there a moment, bard and warden, lit in the dim candles of the Pearl.

\--

“Why hasn’t anyone else noticed these murders?” Wynne posed the question to the whole group who each had their own reactions, Leliana shrugged, simply busy tying flowers into Ri’s hair, Alistair scratched his head and looked distressed but Morrigan said bluntly “It’s a templar doing it, templars could kill in full view of the Divine and there’d be nothing done about it or any fuss made.”

Ri agreed with the witch but knew Wynne would lecture her later so she kept her mouth shut on that.

The door to their room in the Pearl swung open as Zevran entered “I have returned with a lead! It seems this templar has cohorts who are all equally deranged and they meet regularly in the forests far from here.”

Morrigan groaned “The forests with Darkspawn sightings? Lovely.” Ri smiled at her “Don’t worry Morrigan worst case we can feed Alistair to them and run off in the other direction.”

Wynne gave her a pointed look and she stifled her laughter.

“So team, let’s go find us some rogue templars!”

**Author's Note:**

> sugars-and-spice.tumblr.com


End file.
